PRICE DANIEL ATTORNEY GF.NER.4‘ 

Hon. uoodrow curtis 

county Attorney 

‘pzs:,o~t , La* 

Dear 

mt 

Sirs 

Ye rerer 

ae follevso 

Be: 

to your reooat 

The legality of realant4 or Frlo county 

aad ot a oounty line 

aonsolldated school 

district voti 

2 

for 

oounty school rustees 

and oouaty superlntendent in IWe County. 

Nquert which read6 in 

"The Moore Independent SchoolT~;~lct 

has been entirely in ?PIO Count 

and it conelsted of a $W't of, 3;# utnot iI1 

of Commlssioners Precinct Ho* 3, ot Frio 

count 

OOMO I8 

Texas, and suoh nohool distrkot has 

idated with the Yancey Independent 

SohooZ District under the Rural High School 

Ooneolidation Lax, The Yancey Independent 

School Matrfct is entirely in Medlna CoIIyptyp and the Yancey In4ependent School MStrict has ths management and oontrol ot the 

eoanolfslat8d dietriot ?iewfrsaVter called 

Pancey==Moo~e ConsolOdo&sd Sdhool DA&P%&. 

"1. Do the people who ~eaide in the 

bounds of this Yanoey=Hoore Consolidated 

Sohool Mat&at9 whloh llles in F~fo County, 

have a right to vote tar oouaty sahooltruetees in F~fo County? 

"2. As pointed out above the YanceyWoo~o Consolidated School Matriot doar not 

embrace the entire bounds of Commzssfonere 

Ppeoinot HO+ 3, in Frfo County, Texas, therefore uoufd those people who ax% residents of 

the Commissioners P~ecfect No, 3, but are not 

residents of the Consolfdated Sohool Distpfct, 

be entitled to elect the County School TPUStee fpom the said Precfnct No. 3? 
BOA, wooaPow ctwtir, pagr 2 (v-1087) 

*30 Wll the people trar tha YenosyXooxw CeneolMated School Ddatriot ot wW.oh 

the Yanoey Idependent School Mrrtrlot har 

the mmqge8mt and dontPo1 of the aanrrolidated &trtriaD;, hare a lo@1 ri$ht to rote 

for trwtse at Large in Pa40 County? 

eCb IF%11 the pea zs who rrfJlde in the 

Xanoepf4iaore Consollda P ed Sohool Wstrlot, 

and who roritle lo that portion ot Rrlo Couaty be5dq in suoh d&&riot, h&m a le al 

to vote tor~the Oounty fuperlntanden f! 

M&t 

at 

s0hoo1r in rpfo oowltyo 

We beUevs your tixat anb thiml questions ape 

wweled by Attorney OeneraP&fse Opinton I&PO. V~!S3c We 

theretore a 

the 'tancoy -fiz 

es with you that the peo le who rerride &A 

037, Oonsoli&stsd Q&00X 8% StPict an& who 

awe ~erldents ot Brie Oounty ma not vote for ooaAt7 

~~1. truetees or oomty mhob T 

#P&a, oountj. trusteer at large M' 

A oopy of Attcmey Oenepal@a Opfnion Xbrb, 

v-59% is enolowl, The op4~lon reets on statutory prov1wJAa bar 

9 

tor thstr bssis the presslee that persons 

we not eligi Is to vote tor truateerr who do not govern 

their partioular sob001 district. Though part of the 

dlatrZot iJl QueatfOA 28 iA e$o tb.lAtf, it i0~Wd4P ths 

addair"bsatiaa et the otricialo of Msdsar Oapmtg. 

Aptfale 2676, VA oS a p p~orEdas in pt%Pt: 

*?be genePa IMRageAeAt and Oc&Pof Of 

the publfa P~ee sohoole and hQh mhools iA 

sOrab county, unless othemriss OVided by 

law shall be vest& in five (5 Y county sohool 

trustees elected SPom the co&V, ore of' wbsrhom 

rLbcrl1 bs elae%da f’xwu the rrountt at large by 

&be qgurlitisd BotwB ot the 001#1 aA& aaAm&Ma%ed fodepewbn% sohool dlstrfcts of %ho 

ootmty, and one Prom eaoh Oopmfss~oAersn Pm- 

&Wt by thA qWtbfff@3d Vs)tePp(I oS eMC!h cO?BStIr&au*Pr o Frw$.nat # 0 F 0 

In view of the above quoted 6tatate ft la our 

apinzoa that the pesidents of ComW~sloae~b~ ?Pe8fo8t so. 

3 ot *lo QauAty who do no% Paside fn %he Yanosy-MoosPe 

QaprolMated Sahool Dfet~fct arid who a~pe otheerpofse qual&- 

Itie4 voters, may vote fop a ooun%y sohoal trus%ee from 

Freaaot $80~3 as well as lop %hs oouBty %FW%W a% Uqe 

toP rwli 0ouAty 0 
Hon. WooaPolf cuPtis, page 3 (V-1087) 

Seotlon 1 of Article VI or the Constitutiorr of 

~BXIUI 

qwll tp 

~0ria68 that certain ola~itbs 0r ~~PBWS ~0 da0a to rots in Tens. Section 2 of this Article 

~mi&JS in pad8 

l Bvepersm ~y sub ect to nona of the 

foregoing disgualifica t ions, who rhnl.1 hate 

srttainea the age of twenty-cm3 years and who 

shall be a citizen of the United States and 

who shall have resided in this State ane year 

nest preceding an sleetion ozd tba lart sfr 

3"1~hm vithln the dietriot or oomtf In which 

p" 

race3 0ff0rs t0 00t0, shui b doe-a 

l qua isted eleotor: . 0 I) 

Artioler 2954 and 2955 of Vernon’s Civil Statutes oontain sidlar p~orisi0w~ 

%la Ooalrsionsrs c 

ty Eavlag thme thoqsaad 

rt or e*ePy oounsoholastic 

pOpU.Utfon or 8oaw aa he p~~osdirrg 

roholaotie aenmaa shall at a oenoxel BleatiaP pr0vfaO r0& ihe elrotfon 0r a county 

rlnttient to eerve ror a ten or four 

~~y~~rs who a&l1 ba a perscm of @due%- 

tictam l t&aiments, good ao~al chmaete~, 

ana exeoutfve abflf%y, and who shall be prorfa0a by the CcrJllfsrrfonaPs court vfth an orfloe in the cowkhouse, and wl%h neceesa~y 

office fuPnituPe ala fixtuPef3~ He shall be 

the holder of a teachePQs f’frst, gmde CEIPtfficate OP teachoPus pemsanent ceptfffeate, 

In evspy couuty that shall attain three thousand (39000) scholastLa population OP SIOP~, 

the Coxm5.ssfone~s Court shall appoint such 

stipopintsndent who sha$P perform the duties 

of such office until the electfon and qualiffcatfon of his successor. In all oountfes 

now OF hereafter hav%ng the offloe of Cow&y 

Superintendent where the schola8tic population according to the last scholastic tenSW 4s less than thpee thousaad (3,000) but 

aore than two thousand (2,000] the office of 

County Supetrfntendent shall contfnue unless 

and until a rssjopity of the qualified p~opect tax paying voters of sa%d county, voting 

a l an eliee%ion held to de%ePlaine whethee said 
. 

Ron. woodPov curtis, page 4 (v-1087) 

offloe shall be abolished, shall vote to abol,- 

ish aaid office, whiah election shall be OPdered by the Commissfoners Court upon petition 

therefor as hereinafter 8 eclfied. 

hovevep, that If a majori e y 

PLLOVfded, 

of said voters 

voting at said election hereinabove provided 

for, vote to abolish said offioe said election shall not become effeotive until the 

expiration of the tern of offioe SOP which 

the County Superintendent has been elected 

or appointed 0 And In all other counties havLng less than three thousand (3,000) soholastie population whenever mope than twenty-five 

(25) per cent of the qualified voters of said 

county as shown by the vote for Qovernor at 

the ppeaeding General Election shell petition 

the Commissioners Court therefor, said Cowt 

shall order an election for said county to determine whether OP not the office of County 

Superintendent shall. be created la 6aZd oountyi 

and, if 8 ma 

i 

ority of the qWiUfied 

taxpaying vo QPB voting at said elec r i:riiill 

vote for the creation of the off&m of County 

SupePiatendent in said oountg, the oommission0~s Court, at its next regular term aftep the 

ho1 

3 

of said eleation, shall oreate the of- fice o County Superintend%ntP and name a County Superintendent who shall qualify under this 

Obapter, and hold such offfae until the next 

Qeneml Eleoticxi, 0 0 0* 

625 (1948)% 

147 'fox, 70, 212 S.W.2d 

“The PI@ to vo%e is so fundamental in 

our form of government that it should be as 

sealouSly safeguarded as ape ow natural 

Pightx 0 It has been said that slaws abpldgix&g the natuPs right of the cftiten should 

be res&afned by rigorous oonstructiions vfthin their narrowest lfmits,V It Is sufficienti, 

hovevep, that we apply here the leas extreme 

and well established yule of oonstPuotion that 

statu%es ~egulatfng %he pi&t to oo+ze should 

thee r%ght. 

be Ives (B pbepal fniterwwtation fm favor of 

It is observed that Article 2688 does not except 

my of the residennts o$ the county from its p~ovislons In 
. . 

HOD. woodro~ cwif5, page 5 P-lo671 

the ilrstWUW8 VhQPQ an QlQOtiQII fOP LL OOuIIt 

: 

Qt Is authori5Qde 

W@WI&iQW 

Qt&lka$QS tfaat all 

On the oontrary, we be I i6QQ 

Of the tiQe$dQatQ Of thhe COWt 

ft 4m- 

&?4QMfiOQ qWlifiQd VOtQPS lsao VOtQ $0 &IQ 4: 

Who aTO 

QbOt OS) tor 

the CorPgey School S~erInten&nt. %aerefore it is our 

OpiM&n thpt the resldente OS tibo ijount 

the ~~06y-llOCWQ COaSOlidQtQd S&00% 

g, do PWidO %a 

Ma 

OthQPVI6Q qWu?iQd VOtQPU 8~6 

riot aab who are 

%Q 

~CIP the S~QPintQndQnt Of Pub&i0 $ 

al&y QmtiQa t0 VOeQ 

Art. 2688, V&&t poass 

OhoOiB Of QOQh CO&U&y, 

v,_Praf,Rl, , m-. 

SulrIwLRp 

'Ehs Pesidents of PPQcinQt Ho. 3 of Frio 

CotId who do not re?Jido ia thQ ~t3~OQjr~OOl'Q 

Coneo I MdBtl School DitstzWt, and v&o UQ 

OthQrl&36 qaUilIfIQd voters, gley Vat@ far 8 

OOWty Soho tlWQtQ6 $COSiI &Q0ihOt 83. MD 

,ve&l a8 rap the countf rohoet trwter a i 

large for such county. A& 4676, V~7.8~ 

-6 PQ8idmt~ of Frio COUnty who PQQfdQ 

la the YanoQy-H(oOP6 COheOlidatQd Bohool Z&Q- 

*riot and who ax-8 othervise quaiiriea VOtQPE 

mQ lQ@ly entitled to Vote SOP the Superintendent or Publio Sohools of suoh oouatt. 

Artc.2688 V.OaS. J 

212 h,2d 62 

aff'lmeid. 

AFPlMVWt 

8, CI DaVlS, Jr. 

County Affair8 DIvIelon 

OhWor 9, Nethews 

Firrnb Asoimtaat Asslatiat